Don urges African governments to integrate climate concerns in development plans

African governments have been advised to integrate climate change concerns in all their national development plans, programmes and policies, Dr. Joseph Kurauka, a Kenyatta University Don in Nairobi has said.

Speaking at the Nairobi Summer School on Climate Justice currently ongoing at the Kenyatta University, Dr. Kurauka said rapid population growth, weak enforcement of environmental laws and structural weakness in key institutions meant to enforce laws to safeguard environmental, social and climate change concerns are hampering national efforts to prepare the country against climate impacts.

He noted that climate-related conflicts among populations living in arid and semi-arid areas, rising poverty level, and the general negative attitudes towards environmental matters are issues governments have to deal with.

Dr. Kurauka urged governments to take heed of the advice from the latest climate science by the Intergovernmental panel on climate change whose latest report have once again proved that human activity is leading to rise in climate variability. Already, noted Dr Kurauka, most of Africa’s coastal lines and the aquatic resources are affected as a result of man’s activity.

Speaking on the international climate change negotiations Robert Muthami, Programme Coordinator with the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung said,” Africa continues to be worst hit by the climate crisis even exacerbating climate related-risks.

Muthami said it is important that local national adaptation actions are provided with the required means of implementation such as climate finance, capacity building and appropriate technologies in line with the conditional aspects in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and the principle of common but Differentiated Capacities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC).”

He urged African governments to forge international solidarity and form strong alliances with the CSOs in the fight against the climate crisis – No single movement will win this fight alone”

Mithika Mwenda, Executive Director, Pan African Climate Justice Alliance challenged the young people in Africa to rise up to the occasion and take the advocacy mantle to drive climate activism around Africa.

“The liberation wars of the 60’s were about political freedom. Now the youth must wage war for ecological freedom, climate justice and economic freedom,” said Mithika adding that the youth can draw inspiration from freedom fighters like Kwame Nkrumah, Nelson Mandela and Julius Nyerere to ensure that Africa gets fair and just climate regimes.